World AIDS day - Facts and figures

Too many people in Sierra Leone – including mothers and babies – are at risk of being infected by HIV or other sexually transmitted diseases. Sierra Leone needs to invest more in health to prevent new infections.Trends based on the Global UNAIDS report 2013[1] show that HIV prevalence has increased in Sierra Leone between 2001 and 2012– more women and men were living with HIV. In 2012, 52 000 Sierra Leoneans were leaving with HIV, an estimated 1.5% of the population[2]. Among these, 31 000 were women.Furthermore, more people live with other sexually transmitted diseases: prevalence has increased from 8% to 10% for Hepatitis B and from 0.8% to 1.4% for Hepatitis C.There are still significant gaps in coverage of treatment for our mothers and babies: Only 3% of the babies born to HIV-positive women who needed to receive an HIV test after birth had actually received it in 2012[3]. Only 15% of the children and 35% of the adults living with HIV were receiving treatment. Only 6.8% of the women who had more than one sexual partner used a condom, increasing risks for the transmission of HIV.Sierra Leone needs to provide adequate treatment to all HIV/AIDS patients, including pregnant women and babies. This can only be achieved if the Government invests more in health.Want to know more about HIV?Find out about World HIV/AIDS day in the Sierra Leone news here.Read more about the 2013 UNAIDS global report, UNAIDS progress report and HIV during pregnancy, or discover the WHO guidelines on antiretroviral drugs to prevent MTCT and on HIV and infant feeding. To read more about condoms and the availability of contraceptives, read this.To find out more about the need for more funds for health in Sierra Leone and discover our health budget tracking scorecards, click here.